Where in the world am I? In San Diego today.

Hi there. I'm Dr. Mary Travelbest, coming to you from a recent trip to South Korea, now sharing my best travel ideas. I'm about to launch on a 90-day trip around the world.

Listener Story Spotlight

A friend and a listener named Lois recently went to Hawaii. She told me about how she spent a lot of time getting travel insurance for herself and her partner. She had to pay more than she expected as her partner was having a birthday between the day she bought the service and the day of the trip. But she said it was well worth it for her peace of mind.

Quick fire FAQ:

The FAQ for today is: Where to find the best travel insurance for a long trip abroad.

1. Start with a neutral comparison engine and you can see this in the shownotes.

Why use it first?

Where to click

Smart filters to enable

Lets you price 30-day single-trip plans from dozens of underwriters side-by-side, then click through to the policy certificate in one step.

Squaremouth (toggle "Comprehensive" or "Medical-only" to see apples-to-apples pricing). Squaremouth Travel Insurance

Medical ≥ $100k, Evac ≥ $250k, "Cancel for Any Reason" if you want maximum flexibility.

Gives you consumer-written claim reviews plus AM Best financial ratings right in the results grid.

InsureMyTrip (same data feed as Squaremouth but different sort logic).

Add "Pre-existing condition waiver" if relevant; check "Adventure sports" if you'll hike or dive.

Pulls quotes from some insurers that don't feed aggregators (e.g., Allianz's higher-tier plans) and lists A.M. Best scores.

TravelInsurance.com

Use the "24/7 assistance" toggle; you'll see which plans outsource help lines.

Skeptical check: All three make a commission; none of them has every carrier. Run your trip through at least two engines and see if the so-called "cheapest" plan really is.

2. Cross-reference with an independent ranking list

● U.S. News "Best Travel Insurance Companies 2025" ranks plans by coverage and claim-paying history—not advertising spend. It's a fast way to see which names (Travelex, Allianz, Tin Leg, etc.) consistently show up in the top tier. U.S. News

3. See what other solo women say

● SoloTravelerWorld.com keeps an updated "Best Travel Insurance for Solo Travelers" guide that spells out what to look for if you're traveling alone—single-supplement benefits, harassment coverage, and 24-hour crisis lines. Solo Traveler

● AbsolutelyLucy.com lays out five red flags that matter disproportionately to women (e.g., personal-assault medical limits, emergency contraception exclusions). Absolutely Lucy

Read these before you fall for glossy Instagram ads that treat "female-friendly" as a slogan.

4. Kick the tires on the insurer's own site

If a plan looks good in a marketplace, open the policy certificate directly on the carrier's website (World Nomads, SafetyWing, Allianz, IMG, etc.). World Nomads publishes unfiltered claim reviews—useful for sniffing out chronic payout delays. World Nomads

5. Verify what your government will—or won't—do

The U.S. State Department's Insurance Coverage Overseas page makes it crystal-clear that Uncle Sam does not pay your hospital bill or med-evac. It also links to the embassy medical resources for every country, which tells you how far the nearest trauma center is from your trekking trail. Travel.gov

6. Double-check your credit-card benefits

Cards in your wallet may cover trip delay, baggage loss, or secondary car rental insurance. The Points Guy keeps a running tally of cards whose built-in coverage is worth something—and where the gaps are (e.g., no medical evacuation).

How to use these resources efficiently

Quote your exact dates (don't round your trip to a calendar month; excess days add cost).
Filter for medical & evac first; those are the two benefits that can bankrupt you.
Ignore marketing buzzwords like "explorer" or "adventure" until you've opened the PDF certificate and searched for the activity you actually plan to do.
Run your final-four shortlist past recent claim reviews (Squaremouth, Trustpilot, Reddit r/solotravel) to see if the carrier ghosted people during COVID or the Israel–Gaza cancellations.
Purchase directly from the insurer once you've chosen—that avoids aggregator change-fees if you need to modify dates.

Stay curious, question every "Top 10" list's methodology, and you'll land the coverage that fits your risk profile—nothing more, nothing less.

60 second confidence challenge

3 things: neighborhood selection, daylight itineraries, scam avoidance

Select walkable neighborhoods with public transportation nearby if you don't drive. Read reviews on the AirBNB website before you select.

When booking a flight or train, be sure it arrives at a daylight time, which can differ in winter months. If it comes after dark, it will be more of a challenge for you.

To avoid scams, be cautious when choosing passwords, logging out of websites, and making online purchases. These are very typical scams. If you are suspicious, you may be right to avoid that vendor and choose another. Don't look like a target, either.

If you like today's Confidence Challenge, Chapter 1 of my book dives deeper—link in description."

See Book A for addressing all of these items.

Find it on the website: 5 steps to solo travel.com or on Amazon. It's a series.

Destination Deep‑Dive

Today's destination is:

South Korea

I visited South Korea last year and am going back this month. I landed at Seoul's Inchon Airport. My Korean pronunciation is not good, so please bear with me as I describe my trip.

I was excited to see the city through my friend Chris's eyes. We were whisked away to a hotpot dinner, then taken to the French neighborhood in Seoul, where we rested overnigh...